Processing facilities are often managed using process control systems. Example processing facilities include manufacturing plants, chemical plants, crude oil refineries, and ore processing plants. Among other operations, process control systems typically manage the use of valves, actuators, and other industrial equipment in the processing facilities.
In conventional process control systems, controllers are often used to control the operation of the industrial equipment in the processing facilities. The controllers could, for example, monitor and control the operation of the industrial equipment and generate alarms when malfunctions occur. As a particular example, a processing facility could include valves controlling the flow of materials in the processing facility, and controllers could control actuators that open and close the valves to control the process.